Improvement in machines for cutting files



A. WE ED}.

Improvement in Machin es-Ifor Cutting Files.

No. 123,849. Patented Feb. 20, 1872.

UNITED STATES ALFRED wEED, 0E BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

IMPROVEMENT IN MACHINES FOR CUTTING FILES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 123,849, dated February20, 1872.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ALFRED WEED, of Boston, in the county of Suffolk andState of Mas or file-bed by a positive and arbitrary feed mechanism, theintermittent feed being regular, without regard to the nature of themetal surface against which the cutter acts, or the depth or nature ofthe cut made, the feed being of course adjustable as to length, but thefeed-movements being regular and only modified by such adjustment. In myinvention, my object has been to make the feed of the file contingentupon the character of each tooth cut, by making the tooth itself, or thespur raised behind the cutter by its blow, an agent in the feed. Toeffect this, I raise the cutter after each blow and move it back, thenlet it down upon the uncut face of the blank behind the spur raised bythe cutter in forming the last tooth, and then push it forward, so thatwhen it reaches the spur it will press against it, and thereby move theblank forward, the

hammer then descending and imparting to the cutter the blow that formsthe groove and raises the spur. The movement of the chisel or cutter isarbitrary, but its ultimate position on the face of the file dependsupon the point where the cutter finds the spur, and indirectly upon thesize of the spur. It is in such method of effecting the feed of thefile-blank that the invention primarily consists.

The drawing represents a machine embodying the invention.

A shows the machine in side elevation. B is a plan of it.

a denotes the bed-plate of the machine; I), the movable bed, in the topof which the blank 0 to be out is secured, the blank immediately restingupon a proper support, by which the face of the blank will be kept inposition during the action of the cutter, the blank being fastened tothe bed by any suitable clamping devices. The movable bed I) rests andslides freely upon the bed a, and at one side rests against a guide, (I,up to which it may be held by a suitable spring, 6, the stress of thespring being regulated by a screw, f, or other suitable device ordevices. 9 denotes the cutter, pivoted in a fork, h, at the end of anarm, 2'. This arm is mounted in a swiveled and vertically-oscillatingsleeve or bearin g, 70, at the end of a short rocker-shaft, 1, extendingthrough a sleeve, m, from which sleeve extends an arm, n, jointed by apivot, 0, to a bearing, 12, the sleeve m extending through a slot in theupright q, so that it can have a forward-and-back movement. Thecutter-arm "i is fixed to and moves with the bearing k, but has acapability of rotative movement in the bearing, so that the edge of thecutter may conform to the plane of the top of the blank. At the outerend of the shaft 1 is an arm, 4, by upward movement of which the shaftis turned and the forward end of the cutter-arm raised, this upwardmovement being effected by a pin, 8, projecting from the side of acam-wheel, t, the arm being thrown down at proper times by the stress ofa spring, a. The cutter being thus moved up and thrown down, itsforward-and-back movements are produced by a spring, 12, and a cam onthe periphery of the cam-wheel t, and the movements of the cutter takeplace in manner as follows: At A the cutter is shown in position readyfor the blow of the hammer, the edge of the cutter being against thelast-formed spur, but preferably slightly straightened up, to moreeffectually cut. The hammer is shown as uplifted or partially uplifted,the hammerhelve being hung upon a shaft, w, at the end of which is anarm, 50, which arm rests upon the periphery of a cam, g, on thedriving-shaft, the hammer being thrown down by the stress of a suitablespring when the drop z of the cam passes the arm 00, the blow formingthe notch and raising the spur a as shown at O, leaving the edge of thecutter in the position shown at 0. As soon as the blow is given, the camy slightly raises the hammer, after which the pin 8 strikes the armr,tripping up said arm, and raising the cutter above the blank, and as thecutter rises, the cam t, acting against a roll or collar, W, on theshaft 1, throws back the sleeve k, and thereby carries the cut- PATENTOrrron.

ter-arm back, so that when the cutter next descends, its edge will be inthe position on the blank, seen at D, the cutter-arm dropping andletting the cutter down, as the end of the arm 1 passes the pin 5, thecutterarm bearingor sleeve 75 being held back by the cam t until thecutter has dropped. But, when the cutter has dropped, an incline, 0 onthe periphery of the cam-wheel passes'off the roll b and the sleeve 70is then free to be fed forward by the stress of the spring 0, thisforward movement causing the cutting-edge to slide over the smoothsurface of the blank until it reaches the spur, as seen at E, and tothen push forward the lile-blank, (and its bed,) the extent of thisforward movement being, of course, determined by the extent of movementpermitted by the cam-incline and the position or form of the spur cut.The feed of the file having been thus effected, the cutter is again inposition for the blow of the hammer, pre vious to which blow, however, aswell on the face of the cam-wheel it may press back the roll slightly,thereby moving back the cutter arm and straightening up the cutter,slightly freeing the face of the cutter from the face of the spur, andbringing the cutter into better position to form the next tooth. Thehammer then again descends, forcing the cutter again into the blank, asseen at 0. By these movements and operations, the process of handcutting is closely imitated, the workman in han deuttin g, firststriking the cutter and forming the tooth, then lifting it and carryingit back of the spur or tooth formed by the blow, then pushing it forwardand against said spur, and then again giving the blow. Instead of givingto the cutter the upward, backward, downward, and forward movements, asdescribed, the file-bed may be drawn forward after the out, until. thespur passes the cutter, (the cutter being first raised orsnot, as may bedesirable,) the bed being then pressed back until the spur strikes thecutter, whichwill, of course, bring the parts into position for the nextcut. The details of organization of the machine may, of course, bevaried, but the arrangement of mechanism shown is effective.

I claim as my improvement in machines for cutting files I s Thecombination therein of mechanism to automatically move the cutter overand behind the tooth just previously cut, and to then carry it forwardto and against the spur of said tooth, and the utilization of the spurof each successivelyanade tooth as means of gauging the proper positionof the cutter for the next fall of the hammer, and as an instrument inconnection with the cutter for securing a proper succession of the cutsupon and along the surface of the blank, substantially as described.

ALFRED WEED.

Witnesses:

FRANCIS GOULD, M. XV. FRO'IHINGHAM.

